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Intravitreal anti-VEGF an option for macular edema secondary to central retinal vein occlusion
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NEW YORK — Intravitreal injection of anti-VEGF therapy appears safe and effective for treatment of macular edema secondary to central retinal vein occlusion, but multiple injections may be necessary, according to a presentation here at Retina Congress 2009.
 Lihteh Wu |
After 2 years of follow-up, 44 eyes injected with a 1.25-mg dose of Avastin (bevacizumab, Genentech) had an average 3.5 line improvement in best corrected visual acuity and 42 eyes injected with a 2.5-mg dose had an average 2.7 line improvement.
Patients in the multicenter, retrospective review of cases by the Pan-American Collaborative Retina Study Group required an average of 7.2 doses in the 1.25-mg group and 8.1 doses in the 2.5-mg group.
Patients in the higher dose group had an improvement in visual acuity from 1.48 logMAR at baseline to 1.18 logMAR at 3 months, and visual acuity was a mean 1.13 logMAR by the end of the study. Patients in the lower dose group had an improvement in visual acuity from 1.46 logMAR at baseline to 1.17 logMAR at 3 months, and visual acuity was a mean 1.19 logMAR by the end of the study.
"From the first month on, there is an improvement in visual acuity, but there is no statistically significant difference between the two groups," Lihteh Wu, MD, said.
There was also no difference between the two groups in change in central macular thickness.